The College Fix

It seems the University of Oklahoma suffers from the same “problem” as other American colleges: It’s not (allegedly) “doing enough” for the school’s minority community.

A couple of evenings ago, a group dubbed “Unheard” offered up some gripes at a town hall meeting. Members will officially meet with Sooner President David Boren this coming Wednesday.

Unheard delivered seven grievances it has with OU. The first is one commonly heard on college campuses: lack of black faculty.

The Oklahoma Daily reports:

There are few black professors at OU, especially in the STEM departments, mechanical engineering junior Alexis Hall said. Throughout her time at OU, she has never had a black professor within her major, she said.

The students then talked about low retention rates among black students at OU — often due to a lack of financial aid and support on campus, group members said.

[Junior Meagan] Johnson has been at OU for six semesters, and she can name at least two black students who have left the university during each term, she said. They either couldn’t afford to keep attending or did not feel welcome on campus, Johnson said.

Directly related to low retention, the students of Unheard talked about a lack of financial aid for black students, many of whom need to work throughout their college careers to make it through.

“Our grievances, they’re a domino effect,” [junior Naome] Kadira said. “One affects the other.”

Hall recounted times that she had been to the financial aid office and had been turned away. It was discouraging to meet with white financial advisers who she felt couldn’t fully understand her situation, Hall said.

In addition to funding, supportive programs for black students are also necessary to make all students on campus feel welcome, the students of Unheard said.

Does anyone believe that American campuses do not go out of their way to hire faculty of color? To make minority students feel welcome?

In addition, how is it that one can only learn if the instructor “looks like you?” And, if a campus is so “unwelcoming,” why would someone choose to attend it?

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